Atlantic States Explores E-Waste Recycling

Atlantic States Legal Foundation is exploring ways to responsibly dispose of electronic waste.  Joining ASLF in this endeavor is Professor Craig Watters and the students from two of his entrepreneurship classes at the Syracuse University Whitman School of Management.  Professor Watters and his students have been working on this issue in conjunction with ASLF staff Kerin Rosen and Jeremy Oliver, and ASLF President Samuel Sage.    

Many common electronic products, including cell phones, personal computers, televisions, and other audio and visual equipment contain materials which can be harmful to both human health and the natural environment.  The simplest example is lead, which is contained in the glass of televisions and computer monitors, and in the solder used in circuit boards of all types.    
 
               Currently, most electronic waste (called “E-waste” for short) is disposed of improperly.  Although there are laws and regulations to prevent certain types of E-waste from entering landfills or incinerators, much of it does anyway.  Furthermore, most of the E-waste that is prevented from entering those conventional waste streams is instead sold in bulk and shipped overseas, mainly to China and other developing nations.  There, anything of value is reclaimed, and the bulk of the waste is incinerated for cheap, unclean power, or otherwise disposed of irresponsibly.  The environmental implications from this manner of disposal are both grim and far-reaching.

               There is an upside to this issue.  In addition to lead, E-waste contains a wealth of other metals, some of which are valuable.  Gold and platinum, to name just two, are contained in electronic waste in significant amounts.  In the past, it was considered too costly or inefficient to reclaim these products from old electronics.  However, the current high commodity prices for these metals has created a new market for previously used electronic components.  A handful of facilities have been built, mainly in the US and Japan, which use physical and chemical processes to reclaim the valuable metals contained in E-waste, while at the same time ensuring that the remaining materials are disposed of properly.  ASLF is looking at the potential for building a similar facility here in Syracuse, in order to create sustainable jobs, reduce improper disposal of electronics in the local community, and serve the broader region as an environmentally-friendly, socially-responsible recycler of E-waste.